Quick-adjusting pipe wrench



1956 H. B. SIMPSON QUICK-ADJUSTING PIPE WRENCH Filed Sept. 17, 1954 ATTiJRN EYE QUICK-ADJUSTING PIPE WRENCH Hall Baker Simpson, San Antonio, Tex., assignor of twothirds to D. H. Bierschwale, San Antonio, Tex.

Application September 17, 1954, Serial No. 456,771

2 Claims. (Cl. 81-103) This invention relates to wrenches and its object is to provide a quick-set pipe wrench in which a toothed latch is spring-pressed into engagement with teeth on one side of a shank of a movable jaw and is manually retractable so as to facilitate adjusting the wrench to grip pipe, tube, and other objects of different diameters, and in particular, a quick-adjusting wrench in which the shank is slidably mounted in a socket pivotally mounted on a shank of a stationary jaw, in which the socket is provided with a side opening which slidably mounts said latch, and in which the teeth on the movable jaw shank slope forwardly while the teeth on the latch slope rearwardly, whereby the latch must be held in retracted position before manually separating the jaws, but can be left in released position when the stationary jaw is positioned against one side of a tube and the movable jaw is manually shoved into workgripping relation with an opposite side to become instantly latched or locked in such position by reason of the continuous engagement of the latch and shank teeth during such work-gripping movement of the outer jaw.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the drawing, wherein:

Figure l is a side elevation of the improved quickadjusting pipe wrench with parts broken away and shown in section.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section through the socket of the wrench taken on line 22 of Figure l, the movable jaw and its shank being shown in elevation.

Figure 3 is a section similar to that shown in Figure 2 but shows the latch teeth disengaged from the teeth.

of the shank of the movable jaw.

Figure 4 is a cross section through the wrench taken on line 44 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a longitudinal section through the socket of the Wrench taken substantially on line 22 of Figure 1 with the movable jaw, latch, and spring omitted.

Figure 6 is an end elevation of the latch looking toward the forward or inclined end thereof.

Figure 7 is an end elevation of the latch looking toward the rear of the latch and showing a spring-receiving socket in one end thereof.

Referring now to the drawing, wherein like reference characters denote corresponding parts, the improved quick-adjusting wrench of this invention includes a stationary jaw 10 positioned on a shank 11 of a handle 12, a movable jaw 13 having a shank 14 with forwardly sloping teeth 15 in one lateral side thereof, a socket 16 having a longitudinally disposed elongate opening 17 through which the shank 14 of the jaw 13 extends, a latch 18 positioned in an opening 19 which communicates with said opening 17 through one lateral side of the socket 16, a spring 20 positioned with one end secured in a socket 21 in the end of the latch, and a spring 22 secured to the handle 12 of the stationary jaw 10 by a fastener 23 and positioned so that an extended end 24 bears against an under surface 25 of the upper portion of the socket 16 for urging the movable jaw 13 into gripping relation with an object positioned between the jaws;

The shank 14 of the. movable jaw 13 is slidably mounted in the opening 17 of the socket 16 and a screw 26 in the: extended end prevents accidental displacement of the,

movable jaw from the wrench.

The socket 16 is pivotally mounted on the shank 11 of I the stationary jaw by a rivet 27 which extends through the shank 11 and also through wings 28 and 29 extending forwardly from the lateral sides of the socket.

The opening 19 in the socket 16, in which the latch 18 is positioned, is provided with confronting lugs having shoulder-forming surfaces 30 and 31 that lie parallel to the axis of shank 14 and that extend over ribs 32 and 33 on upper and lower sides of the latch (as viewed in Figure 1) whereby with a sloping forward end or tip 34 of the latch retained by an overhanging forward wall or ledge 35 of the socket and with the latch held by the spring 20, accidental displacement of the latch from the socket is prevented.

The under surface of the latch 18 is provided with rearwardly sloping teeth 36 that are positioned to coact with the teeth 15 in the shank 14 of the movable jaw 13 and the outer surface of the latch 18 is knurled providing a thumb-engaging button 37. The upper and lower sides of the latch 18 (as viewed in Figure 1) are also provided with ribs 39 and 38, respectively, which in turn provide shoulder-forming surfaces that slope forwardly toward the ribs 32 and 33 so as to ride on correspondingly sloping upper surfaces of the confronting lugs having the shoulders 30 and 31 whenever the latch is either manually retracted or spring advanced.

With the parts formed and assembled in this manner, and with the latch manually retracted, as shown in Figure 3, the movable jaw 13 is readily drawn through the socket member 16 in the direction indicated by the arrow A, and after the jaws are positioned around a pipe, tube, or the like, the latch is released and the jaw 13 is then shoved rearwardly to engage the pipe, the teeth 36 of the latch 18 ratcheting over the teeth 15 until the movable jaw reaches its work-gripping position, at which time the spring 20 holds the oppositely sloping teeth 15 and 36 in engagement to prevent separation of the jaws.

To release the wrench from the object, the button 37 of the latch 18 is engaged by a thumb and pressed rearwardly to the position shown in Figure 3, in which a thumb is indicated by dotted lines 40.

It will be understood that modifications, within the scope of the appended claims, may be made in the design and arrangement of the wrench without departing from the function of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a quick-set wrench, the combination which comprises a stationary jaw having a handle extending rearwardly therefrom, a socket having an elongate opening extending longitudinally therethrough, said socket being pivotally mounted on the handle for rocking movement about a transverse axis, a movable jaw having a shank extending rearwardly therefrom and positioned with the shank extended through the elongate opening of the socket, said shank having transversely extending forwardly sloping teeth :on a lateral side thereof, said socket having a side opening communicating with said elongate opening, said side opening providing forward and rear walls, said forward wall being beveled and said side opening being positioned in that lateral side of the socket corresponding with the lateral side of the shank of the movable jaw on which the teeth are provided, a latch having an inclined forward wall positioned in the side opening of the socket and having transversely extending and rearwardly sloping teeth on its under surface to coact with the teeth of the shank of the movable jaw, said latch having a recess Patented Aug. 28, 1956 in its rear wall,- a spring positioned in said recess in the latch and compressible against the confronting rear wall the beveled --wail of the side opening of the socket ifor' retaining the teeth of the latch in engagement with {the teeth of the shank of the movable jaw, and a spring mounted 'at one end on the *handle of the stationary javv and having its other end bearing against {an under snrfaee of the socket --rearwardly of said transverse axis -for urging the rear portion of the socket away from the handle and the movable jaw toward (the stationary -jaw.

2. In a quick-set wrench as defined in e-lain'i '1, anti means preventing accidental displacement of the shank of the movable -jaw from said socket, and said latch having an integral button projecting from said lateral side of the socket, said button having a knurled outer surface to facilitate actuation of the latch by a thumb of a users hand that grips the handle of the wrench.

References Cited in the file of this patent 1 UNHED :STATES 11 ATENTS ,;Q-I4;93.6 :Evans Oct. .1913 1,999,076 Bauman et :al Apr.'2-3, 1935 2.01.5,895 vI-Iagho Oct. 1,, 1935 

